The Negev fortress of Masada, best known as one of the last holdouts of Jewish rebels against the Roman empire in 70 CE, was built in the 2nd or early 1st century BCE by the kings of the Hasmonean dynasty. When it was excavated in the 20th century, archaeologists found a number of ancient religious scrolls that have helped historians better understand the evolution of Judaism and the text of the Hebrew Bible itself, as Lawrence Schiffman explains:

During the past two weeks, the Israeli government has been gradually reopening schools, restaurants, and beaches, leading to a spike in the number of coronavirus cases, the reclosing of some schools, and the quarantining of hundreds. The new outbreaks, for the most part, have spared the ḥaredi communities so severely affected by the initial waves of the virus. But, writes Ruthie Blum, there has been no parallel expressions of anger akin to what was directed at the ultra-Orthodox two months ago: